Sticks and Stones
by WalkerHarley
Summary: Layla had run away from her problems. She was good at running and never looking back. Eventually she find somewhere safe .. but the past comes back to haunt her. Even when the world goes to hell your troubles can come back to haunt you. Merle/OC OC/Other Characters Beth/Daryl & Other Pairings
1. The Escape

Hey everyone So first Walking Dead fic and I really enjoy writing this. So please read, favourite and review. Really want your feedback

Preface

There are only two things you can determine in life, you are born and then you die. What happens in between is merely time, time wasted and spent using up the minutes until your untimely death. Optimists will tell you to cherish every moment as if it is your last, realists will tell you to ignore the bullshit and do whatever the hell you want. Well that's how I live my life anyway.

Chapter 1

"Just one more! Come on Layray just one more and then we can go!" Usually it was me who would be persistent to stay for one more drink but not tonight.

"Chloe I have to go ok, if I don't you know he will freak the fuck out!" I started to pull my coat on when the bartender placed two more drinks in front of us. He smiled at Chloe as she pushed the shot glass in front of me, I suppose one more drink wouldn't hurt.

Well that one drink did hurt, as I tilted my head back to let the tequila slide down my throat I noticed a figure walked through the entrance of the bar. Merle Dixon looked pissed!

I grabbed my bag and gave Chloe a quick kiss on the cheek as I turned to walk towards Merle. Chloe noticed me moving and turned to see where I was going, she didn't say anything though, she never did.

"What the fuck are you doing here girly? I was at home waiting for you", Merle snarled as he grasped my elbow and dragged me across the bar's car park.

"Merle it was a few drinks! I'm surprised you weren't in there drinking whatever sorrows you have away", I said with a snide tone. It was definitely the alcohol talking as I would never talk to Merle like this, especially when he was in the mood he was in now. He let my arm go as we reached his truck and he opened the passenger door and allowed me to get in. That was the one ounce of chivalry Merle had at this point. He slammed my door and walked around to the driver's side and clambered in. I looked around the truck, this was full of so many memories. It was where we had our first kiss, where we had random road trips with Daryl, its where he first told me he loved me.

It wasn't like that anymore, this wasn't a happy truck. We didn't laugh in here anymore, we cried. We didn't hold hands in here anymore, he held onto my wrist. We didn't kiss in here anymore, he just barked at me. This wasn't our happy place anymore.

"I'm sorry Merle I really am. I didn't know Chloe was going to keep me at the bar for so long and I.."

"Just shut up okay! I went to pick you up from work and you weren't there! I rang your cell and it was going to answer phone! Did you think about me huh!? When you were having a drink with your ol' pal did you think me?!"

I was looking at my hands, fiddling my fingers. I knew how this was going to pan out; he would shout, drag me into the house, alert one of the neighbours, he would hit me or push me and then I would lie to any cop that came our way. Merle brought me out of my day dream, "Are you gonna answer me?!"

"Yes ok Merle! Yes I thought about you, all I ever do is think about you. I think about all the things you do, about all the other girls you've been with, about how much I want to leave you but I can't!"

Merle didn't say anything as he pulled the car into the driveway. He just turned off the engine, jumped out the car and headed into the house. That was strange as he normally had a thousand and one horrible things to say to me. He never walked away. I timidly opened my door and walked up the path to the front door.

Our house wasn't much, just a typical small redneck house. It wasn't much and it wasn't something I was used to. I came from a city in England, I didn't know anything about hunting or the redneck lifestyle. I came to the states to make a fresh start with my best friend in hand. Chloe and I had been through so much together and we always had each others backs. She constantly told me to leave Merle but I couldn't. I love him no matter what he does.

I looked around the living room but he wasn't there. That's when I heard glass bottles clinking. He was in the liqueur cabinet in the kitchen, that was his favourite part of the house. I made my way into our bedroom, discarding my boots and coat on the way. Once I got into our bedroom I flopped down onto the bed and cocooned myself in the duvet. I slowly started to drift off when Merle came into the room.

"You better not be going to sleep on me girly! We have a lot to talk about! Oi are you listening to me girly?!"

I sat up to look at him, his eyes were red and there was a bottle of bourbon in his hand. He was pissed and I was going to suffer for it.

"I'm sorry", I said trying to avoid eye contact with my drunk boyfriend.

"Of course you are sorry! You really don't care about ol' Merle do ya? That's why I hit you to teach you to learn".

"What do I learn Merle? I learn to keep my mouth shut! I learn not to say or look at you in the wrong way when you've had a drink. I have learnt that you aren't the man I fell in love with."

Merle didn't say anything. He just walked out the bedroom and shut the door. I placed my head onto the pillow staring at the ceiling. I heard some noise coming from the living room and then the radio started playing. Some old country crap I think. It was Merles angry music. I couldn't hear anything after that so I went to sleep.

I awoke and rolled over to look at the alarm clock, it was 3:17am. I had been asleep 2 hours. I sat up and pulled my hand through my hair. Merle's music wasn't playing anymore. But I could hear something else. I got up, grabbed my bag and opened the bedroom door quietly. I walked towards the living room, creeping slowly as the groaning got louder. As I got to the living room I saw where the groaning was coming from. There was Merle. Merle was with a girl. Not just any girl it was a prostitute, a prostitute I had seen in the bar before. Merle was fucking a woman of the night on our couch.

I turned around and grabbed my previously discarded boots and coat. I clambered through the living room as the groaning stopped. She stopped moving on top of my boyfriend as Merle moved his head to the side to look at me. He didn't say anything, he just looked. I walked out the front door and started to walk up the street. I wasn't too sure where I could head or who I could speak to. I just kept walking.


	2. The Farm

Hey again everyone!

Just a quick message ... this story will be based on what you want! Review with the answer to the questions at the end. Big thanks to my two friends who decided what to happen on this chapter. So stay happy people, read, review, favourite and share.

xxxxxx

6 months later...

The world had gone to shit and I mean really to shit! The dead weren't dead anymore, they were walkers. I've seen them rip someone's flesh right from their body, treating them like a chew toy! The fresh air that once filled my lungs is replaced by the smell of rotting flesh.

We have found a sanctuary now with a good family. We don't know how long it will last but we know it is good here. The Greene family have welcomed us with open arms and helped us stay away from all the horror outside the fence. Hershel Greene was a good man, a man of god, who has helped us from the very moment we met.

Beth is a sweet girl, something Chloe really likes. As soon as she set eyes on Beth she fell in love, that's the thing with Chlo .. She always wants something she can't have.

Maggie was as tough as old boots, you wouldn't mess with her on a dark night. We would sit on the porch at night and listen to the peace. That was until we heard the groans of the un dead. I doubt we will ever get peace back.

We saved Maggie's life, that's how we got here. We were walking through some words when he heard a horse in distress. We went to carry on as we just thought some poor animal was being mauled by some walkers. That's when we heard Maggie scream.

We ran to where the scream came from and saw her wielding a baseball bat, trying to fight off about a dozen walkers. I grabbed my machete and sliced three of the walkers heads in half. I turned to see Chloe putting her spear through a walker laying on the ground. I turned to look at Maggie who was now covered in a vast amount of walker gunk. She smiled at me, from then I knew we would kick ass for a long time together.

"What are you smirking at Danes?" Maggie said, pulling me out of my daydream.

"I'm actually thinking of when we first met if you should know. When you pulled the whole damsel in distress card."

"I was not a damsel in distress I was ..." Maggie stopped speaking and grabbed her binoculars.

She was staring out across the field towards the woods. There were figures running across the field and they were running towards fast to be walkers. There were two other figures dragging behind them, one I recognised as Otis.

"Daddy!" Maggie called as the figures running got closer, it was a police officer and a child in his arms. Hershel came out the house behind us with Patricia as he rolled up his sleeves.

"Was he bit?" He asked as the officer pulled the boy closer to him.

"No. Shot. By your man." Oh no.

"Otis?"

"Yes in the woods".

Hershel looked at the boy then started to guide the officer into the house, "follow me. Maggie prep the room, Patricia get my kit. We are going to need gauze and an IV."

The group moved through the house into the downstairs bedroom. The officer put the boy down, he was so pale and looked half dead already. The officer didn't take his eyes of his boy.

Hershel spoke to me, "Leila could you take Officer .."

"Grimes. Rick Grimes", the officer replied.

"Could you please show Rick into the dining room whilst we try to fix his boy?"

"Sure", I replied and ushered Rick down the hall. He was grimy and panicked what you would expect of a man who had just seen his son get shot?

Rick stood staring at the door as I sat down at the dining table, "Hershel is a good man and he is good at what he does. I am sure your son will be ok".

Rick didn't say anything he just continued to stare at the door. I moved to the kitchen to get some juice. I poured two glasses, "why don't you come sit down and have a drink. Not much you can do for your boy by standing staring at the door".

Rick turned around and came to sit at the table. He looked up at me as I passed him a glass, he didn't smile or say anything and he merely nodded his head in thanks. He was a good looking man, he must have certainly caught a few eyes before all of this. He was fiddling with his hand, that's when I saw the wedding band. Although that doesn't mean much these days, most of us had lost someone we loved. There was nothing to say that his wife was still alive.

"My wife", he grumbled, "someone needs to go get my wife". So she was alive.

I left the dining hall and headed into the hall, that's when I bumped into Chloe.

"What the hell is going on?!" she said, obviously she had been napping or day dreaming about Beth.

"Otis shot some kid in the woods", she looked at me with shock, "obviously by accident! Anyway Hershel is trying to fix him up and the kids dad is in the dining room all shook up. He says he wants his wife here."

Chloe nodded and walked past me and into the dining hall.

"Where is your wife?" she asked him. He explained about the highway and woods that they were searching.

"And what is her name?" Chloe asked as she tied up her boots.

"Lori. Please go get Lori and tell her Carl has been shot".

Chloe nodded and headed out the dining hall and called for Maggie.

"Me and Maggie will go and search the woods, we shouldn't be too long. I mean there isn't a lot of alive people out there is there? We will take the two horses."

Chloe gave me a quick half hug as Maggie smiled at me. They each grabbed their weapons on the way out and left. They would be back. They always came back.

Rick still hadn't left the dining table when I went back in, he was still staring at his glass.

A few minutes later Hershel came in asking for blood. Rick of course said yes and went into the bedroom with him. We met Shane not long after as he came in with a clearly out of breath Otis. Chloe and Maggie returned with Lori, she fell into Rick's arms crying.

The night was a bit of a blur. I kept dozing off but I sort of knew what was happening around me. Lori and Rick cried as their son Carl underwent painful procedures. Otis and Shane went to the high school to get some supplies. Otis never came back. Patricia broke down and grieved for her husband in the arms of Hershel and Rick.

Once Lori and Rick were settled for the night next to their recovering son I decided it was a good time to go to bed. On my way to my room I could hear water running in the bathroom. Then I heard some clippers. I ignored it and went to sit on my bed. Once the bathroom door creaked open i couldn't help but peer out.

"Nice hairdo", I said to the now shaved Shane.

He nodded his head and went to walk off, "if you need somewhere to sleep I have some room". I don't really know what I was thinking, I just could tell there was something eating Shane alive. I for one wanted to know what it was.

He turned around and walked towards me. I nodded towards my bedroom and he went inside. As I went to follow him I saw Lori looking in our direction, once I made eye contact with her I quickly turned away and went inside.

Shane was sitting on my bed looking at the floor. Since the walkers it had been lonely and I had changed. I craved for someone to touch me, love me, feel me. I craved for Merle. I wish I had never left that night, I know he treated me like crap, but at least I wouldn't be alone during the zombie apocalypse.

I walked over to him and grabbed each side of his face with my hands. He looked up at me and took a deep breath out. I gently stroked his cheek with my thumb and leant forward. All of a sudden his hands are in my hair. He pulls me onto him in a quick swift movement. My legs are either side of him and I am straddling his lap. He attacks my mouth so ferociously I hardly have time to breathe. He moves quickly and before I know it he was on top of me, pinning me to the bed. This wasn't right, hell I didn't even like him!

"Stop Shane", but he didn't he kept going. I tried to move from underneath him but he kept me pinned down.

"Shane stop!" he kept moving on top of me, the restraint on my wrist getting tighter. Shit I didn't think this through.

"Shane what are you doing?!" It was Rick. Shane let go of my wrists so I could move off the bed, he just stood up and left. What a prick!

"Are you ok?" Rick asked as he moved into my room.

"Yes I am fine thank you. How is your son?"

"He is fine .. thank you. I erm .. I better go", he stuttered as he made a swift exit.

My oh my I think I like the Sheriff.

**Soooooo Leila likes Rick! Next chapter do we stick to the story of Sophia in the barn and the entrance of the gorgeous Daryl? Or do we fast forward and bring Merle into it? Also do we like zombie universe or prefer AU? Please review or message me. **

**Love Harleyxx**


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